This one was their latest: Euphoria. But there was this lyric, which I had to go and check on the Spotify:
Look, maybe you’re just being a bit dramatic about this, but if you are genuinely sealed off and running out of air, then absolutely the last thing you want to be doing is starting a fire. Because the bit of the remaining air that you want to use is the oxygen, and once that expires, so will you.
Jeez. Don’t they teach the fire triangle at schools in Devon?
I don’t know how much space you have in your sealed off place, but really, I cannot emphasise this enough: do not start a fire. Aside from the oxygen implications above, there will be hot and potentially toxic gases given off during the combustion process, and in an airtight environment, asphyxiation becomes a real danger.
And then there’s the fire itself. That stuff is hot. Even overlooking the rest of the issues (which you can’t really do, anyway), it will make the space uncomfortably warm, given the aforementioned lack of air exchange.
And if this whole fire thing is all just a metaphor, the actions involved “spicing up this love affair” would still be unwise, given your current predicament. If you are going to increase your physical activity, maybe utilise it in a more constructive (but potentially less fun, granted) way and try and find someway of escaping. Or at least making some sort of rudimentary vent. That way, there should be plenty of time for fire starting, spicing up your love affair and general euphoria.
Say what you like about Muse (and I will be doing just that below), their music is great for a run or a workout. I don’t actually listen to music on my runs anymore – it’s far too dangerous – but if I did, their music would be great for that. That weird uncatagorisable mix of alt rock, glam rock, pop synth, metal, classical, EDM and even occasional dubstep makes for an often unpredictable – but always energetic – playlist.
Spotify put me onto a remix of their latest single, Compliance:
Echoes of their beautiful love song Endlessly and hints of the theme from Knight Rider. See what I mean about a weird mix of genres? Still, that got me through a quick 5kms on the static bike. Go whoosh whoosh.
I’ve since been listening to some their other stuff. And it’s been cool to rediscover their sound.
However…
The subject matter of their lyrics does leave me cold. In fact, that was the reason I stopped listening to them in the first place. I just found it hugely annoying to have to hear about Matt Bellamy’s paranoia around the “New World Order” and our alleged reptilian overlords for an hour at at time, broken up into ten 6 minute sections. Think David Icke, but with a decent soundtrack. Not that he’s not free to believe in that sort of nonsense. Of course he is. Just like I’m free to switch him off for doing it.
He’s not soft about it either. In Animals, he refers to bloodthirsty capitalists suggesting to them:
Kill yourself, come on. And do us all a favour.
Searching up that lyric, I’ve now got helpline numbers all over my internet. Great.
In Uprising, he enthuses that:
It’s time the Fat Cats had a heart attack.
Which seems an odd stance, given that each and every record Muse sell pops some more money into the coffers of Warner – one of the three biggest music publishers on the planet. I mean, surely the band could sign to some no-name, independent label, but then would they sell as many records? I guess you could argue that they are just trying to get their message out to as many people as possible. Or you could suggest that they are wildly hypocritical. Will we ever know?
The ticket prices for their tour are difficult to reconcile as well. Some of them beyond £250 for Huddersfield in June. And again, sold through Ticketmaster, who aren’t exactly socialist angels when it comes to doing business.
It’s all a bit of an odd dichotomy.
The pandemic was difficult for a lot of people, but I feel that as an alleged vindication of his ideas on government control, and as an opportunity to create lots more content, it was actually a blessing for Matt. You just need to listen to the track above or look at the lyrics to his anti-lockdown love song/rant, Verona:
Can we kiss with poison on our lips? Well, I’m not scared
Ooh. You rebel, you.
Can we touch and taste forbidden bliss? They can’t stop us now, I won’t let you be alone I am coming for you Keep us apart, it’s too much to ask We’re running away Take off your clothes and take off your mask
Songwriting: 100% Microbiology: not so good. And this really just stems from basic Germ Theory (which could actually be the title of their next single).
It leaves me with a quandary. Can I enjoy the music but ignore the often moronic messages that they’re trying to share? Well, yes. For a while, at least. So I’m going to have more high-energy workouts over the next few days or weeks before becoming annoyed again and shutting down Muse for another few months or years.
I promised, not so very long ago, that we’d make a return to Muse’s back catalogue with the song that I didn’t share that day. And here I am, and it is. (Truth is, I’m writing this post immediately after I wrote that post as part of my scheduled blogging while I’m on holiday, but please don’t tell the purists.)
Mercy then, with all the electronica, rock’n’roll and soaring vocals of Bliss, but now with added piano and a flash of a Pincushion Protea at 1:07.
This video demonstrating the difficulties inherent in attempting to mentally reprogramme android women should be a slautory warning not to try this sort of potentially dangerous science.
The android protagonist in this case is played by actress Elle Evans who can also be found playing the blonde girl in Robin Thicke’s rapey song Blurred Lines, the commercial success of which, when compared to Muse’s effort above, says ever so much about the sad state of the world we live in.
“My goodness,” he thought, the realisation having suddenly dawned upon him. “I haven’t listened to any Muse in ages.”
And this is a bit weird really, because they’re one of those bands nearly all of whose songs I nearly always enjoy. And thus, with wanting to share something from them, the only problem was which one to choose. I had a good time listening through several (or more) of their efforts before plumping for Mercy.
And then I changed my mind and went old-school with Bliss. In which the lead singer takes a bit of a tumble.
We’ll save Mercy for another day. Soon.
Just enough electronica to keep the electronica people happy.
Just enough rock’n’roll to keep the rock’n’roll people happy.
And just enough wind resistance in deep space to irritate the astrophysicists.
All set to the backdrop of Matt Bellamy’s soaring vocals.
Popping a Muse playlist onto my Spotify before heading off to Europe now seems like a very sensible idea.
Lifted (in part at least) from the BBC 6 Music article 18 albums we’re looking forward to in 2018. As ever, their selection does differ somewhat from mine, but there is still some correlation.
I heard the “new” Manic Street Preachers single International Bluefor the first time yesterday (hey, it’s been December) and I was instantly hooked. Described – accurately – as a sister song to this immortal classic:
…it promises much for their Resistance is Futile album, due early April.
We’re also “promised” offerings from Sleaford Mods, Muse (who knows what we’ll get this time: I’m going for a glam rock orchestral rave electronica classical piano opus), hometown boys the Arctic Monkeys and the rest of those Belle and Sebastian EPs.
That’s a lot of potentially great music to look forward to. 2018 could be almost as good as several of the previous years have been.
